The following excerpted from an interview that took place at the Edwards Pro Stop on October 11, 2002:

CG: Has recording yourself helped you in your concept of sound?

DT: Do you mean like recording projects?

CG: Yes, and even just recording yourself while you are practicing.

DT: For sure. I switched to the Edwards based on what I was hearing in playbacks on recordings I was performing on in the early 90's. In certain instances I made a direct change because of what I heard. In many other instances, and this may sound funny to you, I made changes because it's important to me that I have total musical creativity and whimsy in my playing. So sometimes that means not listening to how you sound, just feeling the process—making sure you have a horn that will respond to whatever your process requires. I have to say that there are times when I listen back as a trombone player and say, "Wow, I wish I could be more trombone perfect," because I know what that is supposed to be. But then I say to myself, "yeah, but listen to the colors." So for me it's a constant insecure battle between trying to get myself to play trombonistically perfect, and get away from the trombone at the same time. It's can be very disconcerting.

CG: When you started Edwards you were playing the dependent valve setup. In the past year you switched over to the independent. Can you tell me why?

DT: I still play both independent and dependent. So many guys were playing on it (independent) that I couldn't turn my back on it any longer. I had to try it out. One of the reasons I stayed away from the independent set up earlier was because it was much heavier than what I was used to playing. With the earlier models of independent set ups, the rotors didn't allow for colors to change the way Thayers do. With the valve improvements and bell choices, there are more options now for people to match the valve sections. It's almost making the dependent vs. independent battle a moot point. I think you can make either work.